Category: Resources

Friday Finds: Stark County, Ohio Deed Archive

Kris Hocker on 7 Dec 2018

I’ve been following up on a clue regarding Michael Bender that led me to Stark County, Ohio. Needing to review a deed for the county, I went looking on FamilySearch to see if it was available online. No joy.

Next stop Google. One of the results was Archive Search Instructions for the Stark County Recorder. Lo and behold, deeds for 1809-1916 are available to search in their archives!

Stark County Recorder Archive

Stark County Recorder Archive search interface

It includes images for both the deed indices and the deed books and is easy to use—even if you can’t just type in a name and pull up a record.

  1. First, you’ll need to create an account and log in
  2. Choose Archives in the menu at the top of the page
  3. Select your parameters for the indices in the top set of drop-down menus on the left
  4. Click on the image icon to show the image
  5. Go to the first letter of the surname, then look for the first letter of the given name
  6. Make note of the page number associated with the first letter of the given name
  7. Select that page from the “Page” menu and click the image icon

You can scroll through the images using the arrows just above the image.

Once you’ve found a deed you want to view in the indices, make note of the book letter or number and the page number. Use the lower set of “Books” menus to make your selections and click the image icon pull up that page. You can save, print, email and/or download a PDF of your selected page by using the controls at the top of the image.

I found the deeds I was looking for, plus others which are adding to my knowledge of the Bender family. Check it out for yourself!

AncestryDNA Updates Ethnicity Estimates

Kris Hocker on 12 Sep 2018

Kris' Updated Ethnicity

If you’ve been reading the genealogy blogs today, you probably already know. Ancestry updated their AncestryDNA ethnicity estimates. It is based on a significantly larger reference population (3,000 -> 16,000 samples) and includes more regions (26 -> 43) and subregions (363 -> 380). You can see Ancestry’s announcement on their blog.

Currently—and for a limited time, you can compare your old results to the new ones on the map. The ethnicity estimate percentages also provide the specific, numerical changes for each region. Here is my original map.

Ethnicity Map

2017 Ancestry Ethnicity Map

It included:

  • 63% Europe West
  • 16% Ireland/Scotland/Wales
  • 5% Scandinavia

There were also a number of low confidence regions, including the Iberian Peninsula (4%), Great Britain (4%), Caucasus (4%), Europe South (2%), European Jewish (<1%), and Asia South (<1%).

And here’s my new ethnicity map.

Kris' Updated Ethnicity

2018 Ancestry Ethnicity Map

Not only have the amounts changed, but the way the areas are grouped has changed, as well. For instance, England/Wales/Northwestern Europe (yellow) is now one category. 61% of my DNA is from the areas it encompasses. Ireland/Scotland (green) is now 18%. Germanic Europe (teal), once part of Europe West, is now it’s own category and 18% of my ethnic makeup. Previously, Scandinavia was one block, now it is two categories: Norway and Sweden. I’m apparently 5% Norwegian. Additionally, I am now 1% Eastern European/Russian and 1% Greece/Balkans. The last two are really the only categories I could question.

If you look at my estimates from my paper trail versus Ancestry’s estimates, it breaks down like this:

Region Pedigree Ancestry 2017 Ancestry 2018
Western Europe 72.82% 63% 61%
Germanic Europe (see W. Europe) (see W. Europe) 13%
Ireland/Scotland 14.04% 16% 18%
Scandinavia 3.12% 5% 6% (Norway)
England/Wales 3.12% 4% (see W. Europe)
Italy/Greece — 2% 1%
Iberian Peninsula — 4% —
European Jewish — <1% —
Unknown 6.24%  — —
Caucasus — 4% —
Eastern Europe/Russia — — 1%

Once you get past the organizational changes, you can that, in reality, not much has changed at all in how my ethnicity is classified. I’m still an American mutt of largely Western European—Germanic and British—descent.

In fact, the interesting bits have disappeared, meaning that unknown 6.24% is most likely from the same areas in Western Europe as the majority of my other ancestors.

To read more about today’s changes, check out these blog posts.

Jacob Schneider’s Timeline

Kris Hocker on 19 Aug 2018

Last week I wrote about using tax records to fill in the details of Jacob Schneider’s life. I wrote about what I found; now I want to show you how I organized it.

Timelines are an invaluable tool for genealogical research. Not only do they help you organize what you’ve found and see what may be missing, they can also show you inconsistencies and overlaps that can point to potential identification mistakes.

There are three places I have created time-based lists of events: 1) in the miscellaneous notes field in Reunion, 2) Evernote and 3) Google Sheets (spreadsheet). Any one of these—or a combination of them—may work for you.

Reunion is my goto for any information pertaining to an individual; everything I find goes there.

I use Evernote when I want to be more organized and structure my research. I found a template from Colleen Greene that includes sections for biographical information, clues, tasks, and a research log. I added a timeline to the template and use it to keep myself focused during research, to try to adhere to standards.

My Google Sheets timelines I use for collecting data from specific sources. It allows me to compare data—census, tax, etc.—for a specific location or surname through time. I also use it to create compact timelines, a simplified version of my Evernote timelines. These are really helpful when trying to distinguish between multiple individuals with the same name in a given location.

Here is Jacob Schneider’s timeline from my Google spreadsheet.

Jacob Schneider timeline in Google Sheets

Jacob Schneider timeline

This spreadsheet only includes records for Jacob Schneider and his presumed family members. I used color to differentiate between people, baby blue being for Jacob himself. Samuel Snyder’s entries are not colored in order to highlight them as I wrote up my proof argument for why I believed him to be Jacob Schneider’s son and Judith Ann Wolf’s husband.

I wouldn’t consider this timeline complete. The tax records need more specific dates and I’m still looking for additional records. For example, Henry received communion at New Goshenhoppen, so he had to have been baptized and confirmed. I’m hoping to find record of that for him and his siblings. Baptism sponsors—especially for the eldest children—can help find additional family members and identify parentage for Jacob and Catharine.

When I examined the records for Conrad and Jacob Nuss in conjunction with this timeline, it became clear that Jacob Schneider was likely working with Jacob Nuss as a saddler. They were both in Upper Hanover Township from 1791 through 1801. Conrad Nuss, Jacob’s presumed father-in-law only overlaps in Upper Hanover with Jacob in 1791 and 1793. Jacob Schneider, like Conrad, is later found in Hereford between 1805 and 1808.

I really like the way a narrative starts to appear when you examine these records. Jacob likely met Catharine while he was apprenticing, learning the saddler trade, and married his boss’s niece! I wouldn’t have thought of this scenario without seeing the occupations in the tax record and the location overlaps in the timeline.

TBT: Using Online Land Office Records at the PA Archives

Kris Hocker on 16 Aug 2018

Way back in 2012 I wrote a post entitled How to Use the Online Land Records at the PA State Archives. This post explained the process of land rights passing from William Penn to colonists through the Land Office in colonial Pennsylvania. If you’re researching a Pennsylvania immigrant—or even a first generation colonist—these records can be invaluable.

How to Use the Online Land Records at the PA State Archives

After this post I used Jacob Huber of Lancaster County’s records to illustrate the resources created during this process:

Jacob Hoober 1733 Warrant

Jacob Hoober’s 1733 Survey

Jacob Hoober’s 1736 Land Patent

For additional resources to find your ancestors land, check out the Warrantee Township maps:

Pennsylvania Warrant Township Maps

and also the Genealogical Map of the Counties:

Pennsylvania Genealogical County Map

 

Hope you’ve enjoyed this Throwback Thursday post.

When Was It Founded? PA County, Township & Municipality Incorporation Dates

Kris Hocker on 28 May 2018

If you’re looking for information on the founding of Pennsylvania counties, townships and municipalities, then this is the page you need! It’s incredibly useful to figure out which township you need to research to find earlier records for your ancestor.

For instance, Halifax Township in Dauphin County was founded in 1804 from parts of Upper Paxton and Middle Paxton townships. If you’re looking for a Halifax Township resident in 1800, you’ll need to refer to Upper Paxton and/or Middle Paxton township records for that year.

I’d found these years ago and printed some out. So, glad I found the source! It’s a great tool for the Pennsylvania researcher.

Once you’ve landed on the main page, click on the county for which you’d like information. A PDF will open. It was created by the Pennsylvania Department of Internal Affairs in 1965.

Once again the Pennsylvania State Archives is the resource to know.

Online Pennsylvania Deeds at FamilySearch

Kris Hocker on 15 Jan 2018

I’ve posted before regarding Pennsylvania deed records being digitized and added to the FamilySearch website. I’ve been using them recently and thought I’d post a list of all the counties with online deeds currently available.

It’s actually complete—meaning if there were microfilm rolls previously listed, there are now deeds online. There are two counties—Philadelphia and Wyoming—which can only be viewed at a Family History Center or associated library, and several with one or two films yet to be digitized.

Online Pennsylvania Deeds, by County

The years are dates for which deeds are available online. Deed indexes usually are inclusive into the 20th century. If the timeframe you’re looking for isn’t included online, you can still perform a look-up in the index and request a copy of the deed from the county Recorder of Deeds.

If you have questions, drop me a line or tell me what you think in a comment below.

Friday Find: Karl Greulich’s Birth Record

Kris Hocker on 12 Jan 2018

While putting together a picture book for my cousin’s daughter, I found records from the church book at Haag, Germany in the online collection of the State Archive of Baden-Württemberg. My Greulich ancestors were from this village.

1838 Karl Philip Greulich birth record from the Baden-Wuerttemberg Landesarchiv

1838 Haag church book entries from the Baden-Wuerttemberg Landesarchiv online records

Here’s a close-up of the actual entry for Karl Philip Greulich’s birth record from the Haag church book.

1838 Karl Philip Greulich birth record

Close-up of 1838 Karl Philip Greulich birth record

The handwriting is difficult, but I can clearly make out his parents—Georg Philipp Greulich and wife Anna Margaretha (née Würzel). The document also names his baptismal sponsors but I’m not sure of all the names. I believe I see “Johannes Philipp Würzel” and maybe Hans Georg Würzel, too.

Karl Philipp Greulich, my 2x great grandfather, was born 13 February 1838 in Haag, Mosbach, Baden. He was the son of Georg Philipp Greulich and Anna Margaretha Würzel. Johann Georg Würzel and Anna Elisabetha Zimmerman were his maternal grandparents and Johann Adam Greulich and Maria Katharina Wilhelm, his paternal grandparents.

1856 Passenger list for the barque Dorette

1856 Passenger list (partial) for the barque Dorette from Bremen to New York City

He immigrated to the United States in 1856 on board the barque Dorette with his sister Eva Catharina Greulich (aged 21) and half-brother Georg Jacob (aged 33). Karl was only 17 years-old. The ship arrived at New York harbor on 21 January 1856. Catharina remained in New York (state) and married. Georg continued his journey on to South America. At least that’s the family lore.

Karl anglicized his name to Charles Philip Greulich and settled in East Greenville, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. On 30 November 1861, he married Susanna Krauss Wolf. After her death in 1863, he married her sister, Caroline Krauss Wolf, on 7 August 1864. In all he had fourteen children, twelve who survived to adulthood, including my great grandfather Elmer Calvin Greulich.

Charles died in East Greenville on 2 February 1904 and was buried at the New Goshenhoppen Reformed Church cemetery.

Sites like Ancestry are great, but more and more archives are putting their holdings online. They can be a goldmine for locating records on your family. If they don’t have what you need today, keep checking. You just might find a treasure.

5 Tips to Help You Get the Most Out of Your AncestryDNA Results

Kris Hocker on 8 Dec 2017

I’ve been using AncestryDNA for more than a year now. Like most anything, there are good points and bad points, things I like and things I don’t like. Here are my five top tips to help you turn my top frustrations into your opportunities to get the most out of your AncestryDNA test results.

1. Add a family tree

What’s the number one thing you can do to maximize the benefit of taking an AncestryDNA test? Add or build a family tree on Ancestry. If you want to make connections to your DNA matches, they’ll need something to connect to.

You don’t need to be able to trace your ancestors back to the original immigrant. Add yourself, your parents, your grandparents and so on as far back as you can. If you can only get a couple of generations, that’s okay. If you can get back to those born before 1940, that’s even better. (See tip #3 for why this is important.)

And, please, add dates and places. Sometimes, when surnames don’t click, places can point a match to the appropriate line in your respective trees to research further.

2. Connect your tree to your DNA test

If you don’t connect your tree to your test, your matches will see the “No family tree” image beside your information, even if you have a tree. They won’t know you have a tree unless they click to view the match. And if it says “no family tree” they may not think they have any reason to view your match. So, please link your DNA test to your tree.

Update: Ancestry has changed this up a bit. They now provide multiple status designations for tree: # People to show there is a tree, Unlinked Tree for trees not linked to the DNA test, a lock icon to show the tree is private, a leaf to show there’s a common ancestor, No Trees, and Tree Unavailable.

Attach the DNA test to you. If you manage another test, attach that test to the correct person in your tree—or their tree if you’ve set up a separate one for them. Don’t make your matches guess whether or not the testee matches the home person in the tree.

I can’t tell you how many matches I’ve looked at where the test belongs to a male and the person shown in the tree is female, or vice versa. My reaction is always the same. Next match.

3. Trace collateral lines

Since the point of taking a DNA test is to connect with cousins (aka matches), building out your collateral lines—aunts, uncles, etc.—as far as possible makes it easier for Ancestry (in the form of Shared Ancestry Hints, aka shaky leaves) and your matches to find your most recent common ancestor. I’ve found it not only increases the number of Shared Ancestry Hints, but I can also recognize names more easily in a match’s tree, even if their tree doesn’t go back far enough to connect to our common ancestor.

In most cases I can build out collateral lines down to those born before the 1940 census. I can often take them further, especially in Pennsylvanian lines, if I luck out and find military compensation files, pre-1964 death certificates, obituaries, and/or Find A Grave entries. If I can datamine online directories and Facebook, I can often flesh out a tree to the present.

4. Make your tree public

A lot of people make their trees private. I can understand that; I have a private tree that I use for my most of my research. I also have a public tree that’s tied to my DNA test. If you want to get DNA Circles, your tree will need to be public.

What’s the benefit of DNA circles? Besides easily finding testers who descend from a specific ancestor, you will also find testers who you do not match, but who match other descendants of that ancestor. For instance, there are six members of the Philip Hoover and Hannah (Thomas) Hoover DNA circles. I only match three of the members. One of these matches shares DNA with all the other Circle members. I can “View Relationship” with each member to see how we’re related. Even if we do not share DNA.

The largest Circle of which I’m a member is the George M. Walker DNA Circle. It has 28 members. Considering he had 26 children with two wives, this is hardly a surprise. These matches—and non-matches—can help me build out the descendants in his family tree.

You can also get “New Ancestor Discoveries” if your tree is public. If two or more of your matches share a common ancestor in their tree and share DNA with you and each other, you’ll see their common ancestor as a New Ancestor Discovery. You may or may not actually be related to them, however. Several of my matches are descended from Jeremiah Rupert (1852-1924) and Abby Ann Heasley (1857-1908). I’ve traced a couple of these matches back to Philip Hoover and Hannah Thomas. The rest I’m unsure about. So far, I’ve found no direct connection between the Rupert family and any of my direct ancestors.

5. Download your DNA results

And the final tip, download your DNA results. Why? So you can upload it to1 :

  1. GEDmatch
  2. Family Tree DNA
  3. MyHeritage
  4. LivingDNA

Each of these sites will provide you will additional DNA matches—for free!2 Granted AncestryDNA has the largest database, but it’s not everyone’s first choice. By uploading to these sites, you’ll be able to include those potential cousins in your research, too. You never know when you might find the cousin who has the family Bible or photos.

On GEDmatch and FTDNA (for a small fee) you’ll also get access to additional tools. Both of these sites will not only list your DNA matches, but will show you where you match on the chromosome(s). This allows you to use more sophisticated techniques—like triangulation—to determine which segments of your chromosomes map to which ancestors.

This creates a more definitive identification of a shared ancestor between you and specific matches than Ancestry’s Shared Ancestor Hints—which is based more on the matches in your respective trees than DNA shared between you.

So, these are my top five tips. I’m sure there are others. What do you do to get the most out of your AncestryDNA results?

5 tips to get the most from your AncestryDNA results

Pennsylvania Deeds Online at FamilySearch

Kris Hocker on 8 Jul 2017

Cumberland County Deed

You know I love deeds. I’ve been haunting the FamilySearch catalog watching and waiting for them to add microfilm of county deeds online. Several of my counties of interest are now available!

The camera icon indicates the records are available digitally. Click the icon to access that book.

Per the Genealogical Society of Pennsylvania, “Allegheny, Berks, Bucks, Cambria, Chester, Cumberland, Delaware, Erie, Fayette, Lancaster, Montgomery, Schuylkill, Somerset, and Washington are among those online. Most are from the earliest years through the mid to late 19th century, with some into the early 20th century.”

Although they are not indexed, so you can’t search for your ancestor online, the index books are available. You can look your ancestor up in the index—just as you would offline—then access the book online and download a copy of the deed.

Deeds are a fantastic source of information. So, give it a whirl and let me know what you find out!

 

My Genetic Communities

Kris Hocker on 21 Apr 2017

My Genetic Communities Accuracy

Several weeks ago, Ancestry released their newest tool: Genetic Communities. These communities are based on some pretty cool work with the DNA of millions of AncestryDNA test-takers.  This work was published in Nature Communications. You can read Ancestry’s paper “Clustering of 770,000 genomes reveals post-colonial population structure of North America” for more information. (It’s neat stuff!)

After the tool was revealed, there were a lot of great articles explaining it, how it works and how to use it, including:

(These blogs are good sources for other information on genetic genealogy and DNA testing, too!)

My Genetic Communities

My genetic communities were exactly what I would have expected from my research. I’m part of the Settlers of Colonial Pennsylvania and its two subgroups, Settlers of Central Pennsylvania and Settlers of the Poconos & New Jersey. The subgroups even match up to my paternal and maternal lines.

My Genetic Communities

Although I was hoping to see some European communities,1 I’m not disappointed in my results. There were no surprises that could launch new and exciting areas to research, but that’s okay. There is great value in consistency in genealogical research. My DNA results have—so far—been supporting my research-based conclusions.

My Genetic Communities Accuracy

Ancestry’s confidence that I genetically belong in this community is 95%. This is a very good thing. It means that my work is most likely valid and correct. There may be tweaks that need to be made the farther back I go, connections to re-evaluate, but overall the foundation is sound. I am following the right paths.

One thing I’ve noticed is that the communities are not static. The Settlers of Colonial Pennsylvania included only Pennsylvania in the original release, but now includes all of Pennsylvania and portions of Ohio.

Colonial PA Settlers map comparison

This demonstrates, I believe, later migration paths of descendants of those early Pennsylvania settlers as they left eastern and central Pennsylvania. The article in Nature Communications includes a graphic that visually shows some of this migration by showing where the “Pennsylvania community” lived 3-9 generations ago.

So, it’s possible that as more people test—especially non North Americans—these communities will be refined even further and I just may get to see that Scottish community I was hoping for.